Sometimes you need "just a bit of nonsense"

In the past few weeks after a tumultuous semester I have been somewhat procrastinating my reading, which is something that will need to be seriously amended if I am going to make it through 103 books before September. I am going to paraphrase Sam Gamgee in saying that sometimes you need "just a bit of nonsense" in your life, as seen in his example of not-so-proper poetry in Book I, Chapter XII. So I guess that justifies my slacker ways in reading...

I've finally set some time aside each day to seriously focus on this masochistic reading project, and I have now finally progressed up to Book II, Chapter II of The Fellowship of the Ring.  

I have finally completed the dangerous, anxiety-filled journey to Rivendell, which if you have read The Fellowship of the Ring you know that it ends with quite a bit of drama. My heart stopped when the nine Black Riders (Ringwraiths) approached our party of hobbits (along with Strider and Glorfindel) on the road. I nearly ceased to breathe as Frodo galloped on the back of Glorfindel's white horse toward the Ford of Rivendell, and joyously exhaled when the Black Riders were swept away in the flood of the River Bruinen. Tolkien's powerful descriptions and whimsical poems have made this book quite enjoyable thus far.

After Frodo wakes up, recovered in Rivendell he has a long awaited feast with the elves and other guests, before getting to catch up with the estranged Bilbo. Of course, there is now a council meeting discussing the fate of the ring, disturbances coming out of Mordor, and what will happen next. I haven't finished reading the chapter quite yet, but I have a feeling that this happy and peaceful little reunion will becoming to a halt very shortly....

Until next time, which I guarantee will be sooner rather than later...

A red velvet cupcake with the best vanilla bean and cream 

cheese frosting known to man, or hobbit, that I devoured while 

blogging at Heaven Sent Desserts on Wednesday May 30, 2012.

Mushrooms and bacon: The food of the gods...

Ambrosia - (am-bro-sia) n. Greek & Roman Mythology The food of the gods, thought to confer immortality. (Source)

In actuality, ambrosia is not some awkward (read: disgusting) dish of odd fruits and marshmallows in sour cream (Side note: Who thought that this was a delicious thing to make as a pot luck staple???? The inventor must have really hated their friends.), but instead the idea of ambrosia is embodied in one, perfect food group: Bacon.

Yes, in modern society bacon is the food of the gods. I will not debate this issue. 

So what does this discussion of ambrosia and bacon have to do with The Fellowship of the Ring? At the end of chapter 4, the hobbits - who are the only creatures who like eating more than I do - eat a dish of bacon and mushrooms at Farmer Maggot's house. I've decided that I want to make a recipe for my version of "ambrosia," consisting of bacon, mushrooms, truffle oil, minced chives and flat-lead Italians parsley. No fruit. No sour cream. Definitely no marshmallows. I will post a recipe once I have figured it out...

I'd also like to take a moment to comment on the hobbit meal plan. I would love to eat six, regular meals each day. Let's see, I could wake up to have breakfast, go for a long bike ride, come home and eat second breakfast, take a nap, wake up for elevenses, work on some writing, go to the grocery store, grab afternoon tea (well, let's be honest, coffee) at Lestat's (my neighborhood cafe), come back for a second nap, wake up for supper, and then drink a couple of bottles of wine before drifting back to sleep and waking up the next day to do it all again. I'd be fat and insane from an overconsumption of wine within a month, but I'd probably be wicked jolly.